Representatives of government institutions and experts discussed at a forum on Friday ways to eliminate fraudulent practices involving real estate. The event was organized by the Union of Jurists in Bulgaria and the Justice Ministry, with assistance provided by the Interior Ministry, the Supreme Judicial Council, the Supreme Cassation, the prosecuting magistracy, the National Investigative Service, among other entities.

Opening the forum President Georgi Purvanov said that stabilizing the economy on the basis of clear ownership relations is a sine qua non for social progress, personal development, furthering the democratic process, and improvement in all spheres of the public life. Purvanov said that investments in Bulgaria are legally protected but what is missing is a set of laws and statutory instruments to fill the gaps in the legal framework.

Chairman of the Union of Jurists in Bulgaria Vladislav Slavov said at the forum that frauds involving real estate increase rapidly but the trend is not reflected in police crime statistics due to the absence of an adequate and unified methodology for reporting crime. Slavov urged for amending both the civil as well as the criminal law.

Deputy Justice Minister Ilonka Raichinova said that the Ministry is aware of the problem with real estate frauds. She recalled that a new information system of the real estate register went into operation in September. Raichinova said that the Justice Ministry has taken an active part in a number of discussions and talks on the issue.

According to Deputy Chairman of the Union of Jurists in Bulgaria Joseph Geron, the sharp increase of real estate frauds jeopardizes the basis of the legal system. Geron said that every other civil case has a criminal element in it. He also said the although there is much talk on this deficiency, nothing gets done in reality.

Geron described the situation as "uncontainable" and said that unless urgent measures are put in place, the Bulgarians, as well as the European institutions, will think that real estate frauds are protected under an umbrella. Geron spoke about the common practice of drawing up false powers of attorney, wills and other documents. "Everybody knows that there exists a well functioning real estate mafia assisted by notaries and lawyers," he said, adding that beggars and people with mental disorders are often used as fictitious transactors in deals involving real estate.

The conference sought to achieve maximum interaction of all relevant entities in solving the problem with real estate frauds. The forum ends with the adoption of a declaration which includes concrete

proposals for legal amendments to solve the problem.

Source: BTA